The Long Drop

'This book is so, so good. Forensic, beautiful and gripping'GRAHAM NORTON

**WINNER OF THE 2017 MCILVANNEY PRIZE FOR SCOTTISH CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR**

**CHOSEN BY THE TELEGRAPH AS ONE OF THE BEST CRIME BOOKS OF 2017****CHOSEN BY THE FINANCIAL TIMES AS ONE OF THE BEST CRIME BOOKS OF 2017****CHOSEN BY THE GUARDIAN AS ONE OF THE BEST CRIME BOOKS OF 2017****CHOSEN BY THE SCOTSMAN AS ONE OF THE BEST CRIME BOOKS OF 2017**

Glasgow, 1957. It is a December night and William Watt is desperate. His family has been murdered and he needs to find out who killed them.

He arrives at a bar to meet Peter Manuel, who claims he can get hold of the gun that was used. But Watt soon realises that this infamous criminal will not give up information easily.

Inspired by true events, The Long Drop follows Watt and Manuel along back streets and into smoky pubs, and on to the courtroom where the murder trial takes place. Can Manuel really be trusted to tell the truth? And how far will Watt go to get what he wants?

'Theextraordinarystory of a 1950s Glasgow murder mystery'Guardian

'A masterpiece by the woman who may be Britain's finest living crime novelist'Daily Telegraph

'Absorbing... this is a bravura performance, a true original'Ian Rankin

'Revisits a dark episode in Glasgow's past... Mina navigates the uneasy territory between fact and fiction with consummate grace'Val McDermid

"It is a beautifully written book, a masterpiece by the woman who may be Britain's finest living crime novelist" * Daily Telegraph * "The Long Drop is not just a success and a thrilling read in its own right, but a game-changer for the genre." -- Stuart Kelly * Scotland on Sunday * "Deeply unsettling and thought provoking in all the best ways" -- Doug Johnstone * Big Issue * "A relentlessly tense and exciting read, every page oozes menace and its core of truth makes it all the more unsettling." * Sunday Mirror * "A wonderfully atmospheric, unsettling read." -- Louise Rhind-Tutt * i *

Author description

After a peripatetic childhood in Glasgow, Paris, London, Invergordon, Bergen and Perth, Denise Mina left school at 16 before doing her law degree at Glasgow University. She subsequently studied for a PhD at Strathclyde. Her first novel, Garnethill, was published in 1998 and won the CWA John Creasey Dagger for Best First Crime Novel.

She has published 12 novels including the Garnethill series, Paddy Meehan and Alex Morrow series. She has been nominated for many prizes including the CWA Gold Dagger and has won the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award twice. In addition to novels, Denise has also written plays and graphic novels including the graphic novel adaptation of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. In 2014, she was inducted into the Crime Writers' Association Hall of Fame and was a judge for the Bailey's Prize. She has also presented TV and radio programmes as well as appearing regularly in the media. She lives and works in Glasgow.